Rhobb Hunter Jr. wore one Mike Conley jersey and waved another like a Growl Towel Monday night at FedExForum while he contemplated whether he was witnessing the end.

Should the Memphis Grizzlies trade Conley and Marc Gasol? Well, the answer can be as complicated as the decision Hunter makes every game when deciding which of the 15 different Grizzlies jerseys he owns to wear.

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Memphis Grizzlies players Mike Conley and Marc Gasol embrace as they put the finishing touches on a 106-103 win over the Indiana Pacers at the FedExForum on Saturday, Jan. 26, 2019.(Photo11: Joe Rondone/The Commercial Appeal)

Memphis Grizzlies teammaes Mike Conley and Marc Gasol (right) celebrate a 110-108 overtime victory against the San Antonio Spurs during the fourth game of their NBA first round playoff series at the FedExForum. Mark Weber/The Commercial Appeal

Memphis Grizzlies Marc Gasol and Mike Conley reacts in the fourth quarter of the game against Golden State Warriors at FedExForum. (Nikki Boertman/The Commercial Appeal) Nikki Boertman, The Commercial Appeal

“Communication is a great thing. We’ve never had to address that with the media,” said Marc Gasol (right), with Mike Conley during play against the Houston Rockets Saturday at FedExForum. “... We play with great intensity, a lot of passion and lot of emotion.” Nikki Boertman/The Commercial Appeal

This was the scene in section 101, a scene that seemed to be playing out all over FedExForum Monday night, even before the Grizzlies suffered the biggest blown regular season lead in franchise history against the Denver Nuggets.

Before another loss gave us more proof as to why this goodbye feels so awkward, inevitable and, at this point, necessary.

Grizzlies fans are living out basketball’s version of the five stages of grief even as the people they’re mourning are still right there in front of them.

First there’s denial, which you could argue began two years ago, once the Grizzlies initially broke up the Core Four but elected not to begin a full-on rebuild.

Then comes anger, which you can feel after every loss lately, after each time Gasol passes up an open shot, or when Conley doesn't come through in the fourth quarter, or when you consider the failed draft picks and botched signings that could have helped them succeed.

After that there’s bargaining, which is where Grizzlies officials are now, now that they told the rest of the NBA last week they were open to trading Conley and Gasol ahead of the Feb. 7 trade deadline.

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Memphis Grizzlies center Marc Gasol celebrates a 3-pointer against the Indiana Pacers during their game at the FedExForum on Saturday, Jan. 26, 2019. (Photo11: Joe Rondone/The Commercial Appeal)

Once that happens, the grieving process turns to depression and that's where some fans already find themselves.

It’s why the Grizzlies’ decision to make this so public remains a baffling one.

Gasol and Conley aren’t gone yet, and yet it feels like the tombstone for the NBA’s longest-running duo has already been engraved. It’s just waiting to be placed in the ground.

“It’s been feeling like it’s our eulogy,” Conley said Monday.

Gasol seemed to think the end is near, too. He seemed to have reached the fifth and final stage of grief: Acceptance.

“They’re going to do what they think is best for the franchise, and when we had our talks I told them I wanted to stay and that didn’t make much of a difference,” he said. “They’ve got to do what they have to do and they have [to do] what they think is best for the franchise moving forward. If that’s without me and they can get great assets, then that’s great. I’m all for it. And if it’s with me, I’m for it, too.”

So after his team coughed up a 25-point lead Monday night, Gasol wasn’t somber. He held court with reporters for 15 minutes outside his locker, regaling us with stories of how his love affair with Memphis began, reminding us again why this break up feels different than any other in the NBA.

Because there's been a Gasol with the Grizzlies since the NBA arrived in Memphis, since Marc moved here with his parents as a 16-year-old and attended the first Grizzlies game at the Pyramid in 2001. Perhaps, Marc joked Monday, he'll get traded for Pau again and the streak will continue.

When he came to Memphis the first time, all Marc knew about this place was Elvis lived here. When he enrolled at Lausanne for his final two years of high school, he barely knew any English. During his initial days here, he would answer every question with some version of, “I’m Marc. I like basketball.”

He became a 350-pound basketball player who ate too many supersize Big Mac meals, who nearly decided to walk on at the University of Memphis, who eventually grew up in front of us, began a family here and became a Memphian largely because he embraced Memphis as much as Memphis embraced him.

"I fell in love with the people, like how they treated me," Gasol said.

And a lot of them fell in love with him, and with Conley, and how the Core Four embodied the ethos of the entire city.

It's why this dismantling is so emotional for some, even if it's probably the right thing to do, even if it might be happening later than it should have.

It's why before what might have been his final home game with the Grizzlies, on his drive to FedExForum, Gasol knew in his mind this might be the last time, even if his heart doesn't want this to end yet.

"You kind of smile a little bit, too," he said, "because you’re like, ‘Wow, it could be it. Maybe not. But it’s been one hell of a ride.' "